I am SO frustrated. I'm sorry for making a million posts about this, but you guys are the only ones I know who understand! My avatar is what he looked like before the tail biting.

This is what he looks like after the tail biting:

I didn't realize how bad it was until I compared the pictures just now!! Fortunately there hasn't been any new tail biting in about a week so I'm hoping they will start growing back.

I don't know if it's new tank syndrome or what, but I'm having an ammonia problem the past few days (as I've written about in another thread). Can ammonia cause stress enough to tail bite? I'm doing 50% water changes everyday and I'm contemplating getting him a bigger tank (the tank debacle can be found in that other thread).

I just want to help him!! He's such a special fish to me. I'm trying to tell myself that I'm doing good with the water changes and everything, that I am doing the best I can, but it's rough. I'm 7 months pregnant and water changes aren't the easiest to accomplish. I'm forcing myself through, though!

Abraham (my fish) feels the need to involve himself as I'm doing the water changes...He follows the baster all around and hangs out in the water stream when I pour in the new water. It seems like after a while he gets too over-stimulated and starts stressing out.

But I need to do these water changes! I hope the stress of the water change isn't too much for him. I'm determined to get the ammonia back down. His pH is 7, nitrites and nitrates are 0, it's just the darn ammonia that's the problem.

I would love to hear anyone's thoughts...Could the ammonia be connected to the tail biting? Is it good that I'm doing 50% water changes everyday and sucking the gravel clean? I know I should do a 100% change but I don't have a 3 gallon bucket for the new water to sit in before the change so I'm doing the best I can at the moment...